Check out a new beta version of this site

Primary tabs

Guide to the Henry Marie Brackenridge and Family Papers, 1816-1889 DAR.1937.03

Arrangement

Metadata Details

Title
Papers of Henry Marie Brackenridge and family, 1816-1889, Henry Marie Brackenridge and family papers, 1816-1889, Brackenridge family papers, 1816-1889
Subject
Brackenridge, H. M. (Henry Marie), 1786-1871, Brackenridge, Caroline Marie, Brackenridge, Cornelia, Brackenridge, Benjamin Morgan, Brackenridge, H. H. (Hugh Henry), 1748-1816, Brackenridge family, Lawyers--Pennsylvania, Judges--Florida, Diplomats--South America, Missouri compromise, Lawyers--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh, United States--Politics and government--19th century, Louisiana--Polititcs and government--1803-1865, Florida--Poltiics and government--1821-1865, Maryland--Politics and government--1775-1865, Pennsylvania--Politics and government--1775-1865, United States--Territories and possessions, United States--History--War of 1812
Description
Attorney, judge and author, the son of Hugh Henry Brackenridge. Most of collection is letters, which were written to and from Brackenridge's wife, Caroline. Many deal with his travels abroad., The focal point of this collection is the professional career of Henry Marie Brackenridge. There are also letters and documents written by and pertaining to the Brackenridge family. While the collection contains some published documents, approximately sixty-five percent of the papers consist of handwritten correspondence with Brackenridge. Also represented are some of Caroline Marie Brackenridge's personal papers and correspondence. Henry Marie Brackenridge's professional correspondence encompasses letters from various notable contemporaries, including John Quincy Adams, Andrew Jackson, Henry Clay, and William Henry Harrison. The letters relate to Brackenridge's various professional activities, which took him to South America, Florida, and Washington, D.C. Other discussions cover controversial topics of the day, including America's role in the colonial wars of South America, corruption in the Jackson administration, and the legal status of slavery in newly admitted American states. The Brackenridge family correspondence incorporates a number of letters between Henry Marie and Caroline, detailing the difficulties of their long separations. Letters from other family members are also represented, including Henry Marie's son, Benjamin Morgan, his brother, Alexander Brackenridge, and sister, Cornelia Brackenridge. All of these letters relate to some aspect of the Brackenridge family. Typically the letters address the health and well being of friends and family members. Education, attire, and careers are topics also covered within the correspondence. Family members writing to Henry Marie, especially Cornelia, often chided him for his lack of timely response to their letters, as well as for his long absences from home. Henry Marie Brackenridge's speeches and essays contain drafts of various writings with handwritten corrections. Also included are newspaper clippings of articles by Brackenridge, along with editorial notes written in the margins. Items of note include copies of several speeches Brackenridge delivered at various Independence Day celebrations and a review of Uncle Tom's Cabin. Miscellaneous items consist of obituaries, legal papers and handwritten copies of literary works by other authors. Researchers may be interested to note that three of Brackenridge's memorandum books are included in this series. The books contain notes that were clearly used in his published works detailing his work in Florida and criticisms of Andrew Jackson. The locations of the sender and recipient have been noted when possible. Item level scope and content notes are provided for each folder in Series I, II, and III. Jane Honeycutt's dissertation on the letters of Henry Marie and Hugh Henry Brackenridge provided useful information in the creation of the notes as did the initial cataloging by the Darlington Memorial Library staff. The original catalog cards have been included in the folders when available. For matters of convenience, Brackenridge's name has been abbreviated to H. M. Brackenridge at the series level., Papers of Henry Marie Brackenridge and family, 1816-1889, DAR 1937:03, Darlington Memorial Library, University of Pittsburgh., Darlington Memorial Library acquired the collection as gifts, 1937 and 1956., Henry Marie Brackenridge was born on May 11, 1786, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Brackenridge's varied career as a lawyer, judge and diplomat would take him to locations throughout the Western Hemisphere and led to contacts with many notable politicians of his day. Henry Marie's travels began early when his father, writer and judge, Hugh Henry Brackenridge, sent him to Louisiana to receive a French education. Taking after his father, Henry Marie pursued an education in law, eventually returning to his hometown to attend the Pittsburgh Academy. After gaining admittance to the bar in 1806, Brackenridge worked as a lawyer in Baltimore, Maryland, Somerset, Pennsylvania, and St. Louis, Missouri. Brackenridge returned to Louisiana in 1811 as district attorney general for the Orleans Territory. When Louisiana entered the Union the following year, he helped shape the new state's legal code. During the War of 1812, Brackenridge provided intelligence to the Madison administration concerning developments in Louisiana. He later wrote a book on the subject, History of the Late War, between the United States and Great Britain, published in 1816. In 1817, President James Monroe selected Brackenridge to participate in a fact-finding mission to South America, in order to report on the rebellious Spanish colonies. The Monroe administration hoped the mission would help decide the matter of whether or not to officially recognize any independent governments that should form after these conflicts. Brackenridge's resulting publication on the trip, Voyage of South America, Performed by Order of the American Government in the Years 1817 and 1818, expressed views largely in favor of the colonies establishing their independence. The work found an ardent supporter in Speaker of the House Henry Clay and explored ideas that are thought to have influenced what would later become known as the Monroe Doctrine. Upon returning to the United States, Brackenridge was elected to the Maryland State Legislature. Along with another representative, he introduced a bill that would grant Jews the right to vote. The proposed legislation proved unpopular but revealed Brackenridge's belief in the importance of the separation between church and state. A chance meeting with Andrew Jackson in 1821 led to Brackenridge's employment as the general's Spanish translator and secretary for a mission to the Florida territories. Through Jackson's influence, Brackenridge was appointed judge of West Florida. He presided over the region during its transition from a Spanish holding to a United States territory. In 1827, Brackenridge married Caroline Marie, a family friend whom he had known since childhood. The difficulties of frontier life and the potential for outbreaks of yellow fever kept the couple apart, with Caroline remaining in Pennsylvania while Brackenridge continued his tenure in Florida. Following his dismissal as judge of West Florida in 1832, Brackenridge wrote a series of public letters criticizing the Jackson administration. Jackson responded, and the dispute continued in various newspaper editorials. Brackenridge argued that Jackson had replaced him with a political ally of the administration and accused the president of radically expanding the powers of the executive branch. Brackenridge returned to Pennsylvania and settled into his wife's land near Pittsburgh, where the family established the towns of Natrona and Tarentum. In 1840, he was elected as a Whig to the United States Congress, replacing Richard Biddle. His attempt at re-nomination failed, but he was later elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Brackenridge continued to write and express his views until his death in 1871., Finding aid Available in repository and on Internet; Item level control; http://digital.library.pitt.edu/cgi-bin/f/findaid/findaid-idx?type=simple;c=ascead;view=text;subview=outline;didno=US-PPiU-dar193703
Contributor
Brackenridge, H. M. (Henry Marie), 1786-1871, University of Pittsburgh (depositor)
Date
1816-1889
Type
Collection, Lawyers-Letters., Travelers-Letters., Essays., Speeches., Personal correspondence., Legal correspondence., Correspondence., Deeds.
Format
4
Identifier
oclc:ocm31452629, oclc:31452629, pitt:US-PPiU-dar193703
Language
eng
Relation
http://digital.library.pitt.edu/cgi-bin/f/findaid/findaid-idx?type=simple;c=ascead;view=text;subview=outline;didno=US-PPiU-dar193703
Coverage
Pennsylvania, Florida, South America, Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh, United States, Louisiana, Florida, Maryland, Pennsylvania, United States, United States, Brackenridge (Pa.), Tarentum (Pa.), Natrona (Pa.), Pittsburgh (Pa.), Pensacola (Fla.)
Rights
Copyright Not Evaluated. The copyright and related rights status of this Item has not been evaluated. Please refer to the organization that has made the Item available for more information. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use., http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/
(1 - 20 of 200)

Pages

Pages